I asked the ladies at my table before leaving the NAACP Freedom banquet held in Missouri City, TX this past weekend if they were “All In”. Unanimously we chanted and nodded, “Yes, We All In”. Before coming to this conclusion, I asked myself if a black man of esteemed pedigree wearing a baseball cap and a jersey while leaving a little league game was pulled over by a sheriff or police officer would he be more likely prejudged as suspicious, violent, a criminal, or mistreated simply because of his melanin rich skin than any other man and the answer that spoke to my heart was “Yes”. This is my reality and thus my hands are raised to declare that “I’m All In”.

“I’m All In” is a simple proclamation to my community that I am taking a stand against police brutality, racial profiling and systemic maltreatment targeting people with melanin rich skin. Despite the progress of African Americans in this country and the opportunities made available through bloodshed and sacrifice, I recognize that there is much more to be done. A black man is still only moments away from a life altering circumstance or tragic encounter with a sheriff or police officer simply because he was black in the wrong place and at the wrong time. So often, so easily, and so instantly I have tried to distance myself from the black struggle in regards to police brutality because I wanted to believe that there was something uniquely different about my standing in life, my choices, my education, and my achievements that set me apart. What became ever so clear was that the racial divide and tension spun in Ferguson from the senseless death of a young black boy could be minutes away from my door step. I have two boys and despite their racial mix they are black by all measures in this country. The women who sat at the table with me at the NAACP banquet this past weekend were also mothers. We agreed that police brutality is costing black lives and it has no respect for class and honorable mentions.

There are countless stories of black people being harassed, falsely accused, and shot for being black in the wrong neighborhood when in fact the neighborhood and home were theirs. I cannot continue to look in my sons’ faces fearing that one day they will unjustly suffer at the hands of the sheriff and police without taking a stand. This is why I boldly declare with anyone who will stand with me that “I’m All In”.